PALO ALTO — Stanford Shopping Center has a new security guard making the rounds, one that can work all day long, literally has eyes in the back of its head and can remain on the lookout for bad guys while entertaining kids at the same time.

Sounds almost like a superhero, right? Actually, it’s a robot, but one that has more in common with R2D2 than RoboCop. Named the K5 and built by Mountain View startup Knightscope, the robot is designed to detect suspicious behavior and alert people to it — not capture criminals.

“I love that people look at it and think it’s a bigger cousin to R2D2,” said Stacy Stephens, Knightscope’s co-founder. “We want to make sure it’s friendly to folks but has that commanding presence.”

The K5 started patrolling Stanford Shopping Center last year, Stephens said. The mall is one of a handful of places in the area where the robots are keeping guard, including Qualcomm in San Diego and Northland Controls in Fremont.

But you might soon see it in many more places. Knightscope has been ramping up operations and, after initially limiting sales to Silicon Valley and San Diego, it began earlier this week to offer the robots statewide.

Despite its friendly appearance, the K5 was inspired by tragedy. After the mass shooting incident at Connecticut’s Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012, a case study by the International Chiefs of Police found that as many as a dozen of the 26 lives lost there could have been saved if police had been on the scene just one minute earlier.

Stephens, who was a police officer before he became an entrepreneur, saw that report and wanted to find a solution. He and his partners eventually came up with the idea of building a self-driving robot that could serve as the police’s “eyes and ears” and alert them to suspicious activity before bigger problems arose.

Stephens and his partners figured a robot could have advantages over more widely used security camera systems. Setup costs could be lower, for example. And by being a noticeable, physical presence, the robot could deter crime in ways that cameras can’t.

“It’s like putting a marked police car on side of the road,” Stephens said. If criminals see it, “they’ll go somewhere else.”

That may sound a little Big Brother-ish, but people at Stanford Shopping Center last weekend mostly seemed to see the K5 as more cool than creepy. Kids repeatedly stopped the robot in its tracks to touch or examine it or get their picture taken with it. Adults stood and stared or pulled out their phones to shoot video.

Hayward resident Thuy Scott, 30, was among those who stopped to take pictures of the robot with her son. “I think it’s cool,” said Scott, whose 1½-year-old son Sebastian was trying to press the K5’s buttons. “It’s a very innovative way to keep it safe.”

Unlike many human security guards, the K5 doesn’t carry a gun or Taser. Instead, it’s decked out with cameras and sensors.

Looking something like a small rocket ship, it has four high-definition cameras arrayed around its top cone to give it a 360-degree view. It has a thermal camera that can detect body heat and sensors that can map out terrain and detect when people are nearby.

The K5’s cameras can read up to 300 license plates a minute. They can also recognize people and faces, although the robot can’t identify individual people. Additionally, the K5 has microphones that can listen to its surroundings and a speaker to broadcast recorded messages or act as a public address system.

The gadget can run for more than eight hours on a charge, Stephens said. But it’s programmed to return to its charging station every three hours or so to strike the right balance between working and recharging.

The K5 is weatherproof, so it can operate indoors or out. It’s limited to smooth and relatively level surfaces, but Knightscope is working on a version that can navigate more rugged terrain.

Knightscope isn’t selling its robots. Instead it’s renting them out to companies for about $7 an hour. It requires clients to have at least two, so that there’s always one on patrol, even when one is recharging. But it will install as many as they’d like.

Stephens wouldn’t say how many K5s are patrolling Stanford Shopping Center, and the mall’s representatives declined to talk about their robotic security guard.

A growing number of companies are offering robots designed to assist and interact with people, but very few so far have focused on the security sector, analysts said. But such robots could catch on, particularly to patrol public places like schools, airports or other shopping centers, they said.

“Little kids are just fascinated by it,” said Juan Higueors, 42, of San Mateo, whose young son, Nico, was among those intrigued by the K5. “When you look at it, some of the adults are pretty fascinated by it, too.”

What it does: Maker of security robotsProducts: K5, an outdoor model; K3, an indoor version due out in the fourth quarter; K7, designed for off-road use, due next year.Headquarters: Mountain ViewCEO: Bill Santana LiNumber of Employees: More than two dozenFunding: Raised more than $14 million in seed, A and B venture roundsCustomers: More than a half dozen, including Stanford Shopping Center

Troy Wolverton writes the Tech Files column and covers consumer technology as the personal technology columnist for the Bay Area News Group. Previously, he covered Apple and the consumer electronics industry. Earlier, he reported on technology, business and financial issues for TheStreet.com and CNET News.com.

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